DOJ Charges 12 With $263M Crypto Theft Linked to Genesis Creditor
U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged 12 individuals for stealing over $263 million in crypto. The individuals are linked to an earlier investigation where scammers were able to siphon off over $243 million from a Genesis creditor.
According to blockchain sleuth ZachXBT, last year one of the creditor of defunct trading firm Genesis was spoofed by a group of scammers, who were able to steal $243 million worth of digital assets and then redirect it through crypto mixers.
Several of the individuals charged, which includes U.S. nationals and foreign, were arrested in California this week, the DOJ said in a press release on Thursday. The remaining two individuals live abroad.
The charges on the individuals range from racketeering, wire fraud to money laundering, and obstruction of justice.Social engineering scams are being increasingly used by scammers to steal crypto. Scammers obtain certain personal information and then trick the user into sending them their crypto.
On Thursday, Coinbase revealed that scammers were able to bribe some of their overseas employees and stole important user data from their database. The exchange expects to voluntarily pay users between $180 million to $400 million for the data breach.U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged 12 additional individuals in a racketeering conspiracy involving over $263 million in crypto fraud, money laundering, and home break-ins. The individuals are linked to an earlier investigation where scammers were able to siphon off over $243 million from a Genesis creditor. According to blockchain sleuth ZachXBT, last year one of the creditor of defunct trading firm Genesis was spoofed by a group of scammers, who were able to steal $243 million worth of digital assets and then redirect it through crypto mixers. Several of the individuals charged, which includes U.S. nationals and foreign, were arrested in California this week, the DOJ said in a press release on Thursday. The remaining two individuals live abroad. Social engineering scams are being increasingly used by scammers to steal crypto. Scammers obtain certain personal information and then trick the user into sending them their crypto. On Thursday, Coinbase revealed that scammers were able to bribe some of their overseas employees and stole important user data from their database. The exchange expects to voluntarily pay users between $180 million to $400 million for the data breach.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
San Diego authorities arrest 3 noncitizens allegedly involved in transporting more than $5M worth of meth
Federal and local authorities in San Diego arrested three men in the U.S. illegally – two from Mexico and one from El Salvador – after they allegedly transported nearly 8,000 pounds of methamphetamine worth more than $5 million earlier this week. The incident took place on Monday around 7 p.m. during a joint narcotics investigation in the South Bay region, the San Diego County Sheriff's Office announced Thursday evening. SDCSO detectives and U.S. Border Patrol agents observed three vehicles they believed were being loaded with bundles of drugs. A federal complaint filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office of the Southern District of California said the vehicles were being loaded in a parking lot on Otay Mesa Road. Cbp Officers Seize Over $14M Of Alleged Methamphetamine At Southern Border Two of those vehicles were driven toward a motel in San Ysidro, while the third vehicle went to a motel in Chula Vista, the sheriff's office said. All three drivers were ultimately arrested. They were identified by the Justice Department as 27-year-old Erick Omar Arriola, of El Salvador, and Mexican nationals Eugenio Lizama, 35, and Baltazar Rodriguez Reyes, 49. Read On The Fox News App Arriola is a felon convicted of driving under the influence, battery of a spouse and false imprisonment, the DOJ said. 'Zombie Drug' Smuggled Across Southern Border A Growing Threat To Americans, Doctor Warns When authorities searched their vehicles, they found a total of 61 bundles of methamphetamine, weighing more than 7,700 pounds and valued at around $5.5 million. "It was one of the biggest seizures of methamphetamine in 2025 in the Southern District of California, and the most significant so far by the new Homeland Security Task Force San Diego, which was recently established by the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security at the request of President Trump," the DOJ said. All three men were booked into the San Diego Central Jail and face charges related to conspiracy, transportation and possession of controlled substances for article source: San Diego authorities arrest 3 noncitizens allegedly involved in transporting more than $5M worth of meth
Fox News
an hour ago
- Fox News
REP MIKE COLLINS: Staged car crash fraud puts all of us at risk. Congress and the Justice Dept can stop it
Cornelius Garrison was murdered in New Orleans in 2020. He had been cooperating with federal authorities investigating a crash-for-cash insurance fraud scheme. For years, Garrison helped stage car crashes, directing participants to purposefully crash into trucks with the hopes of extracting a settlement from their companies. He would then funnel the passengers from these choreographed car wrecks to billboard attorney Vanessa Motta's law firm, who would then file knowingly fraudulent lawsuits. For agreeing to expose this crime network, Garrison lost his life. Nine defendants now face charges related to this particular staged automobile collision scheme, according to an indictment from the U.S. Department of Justice. So far, more than 63 individuals have been charged in a federal probe of staged car crashes in the New Orleans metro area. Unfortunately, these tactics are not isolated to New Orleans. They are occurring in cities across this country. Criminal networks across the United States are choreographing collisions with trucks, rideshare cars and private motorists, causing injuries, and eventually siphoning settlements that the rest of us ultimately fund. Congress can stop it. Earlier this month, I led a group of U.S. representatives in calling United States Attorney General Pam Bondi to create a federal task force to investigate and prosecute these rings, helping to shut them down. The Trump administration should launch it now. Today, motorists face choreographed threats when they drive on America's roads. It may look like two sedans boxing in an eighty-thousand-pound tractor-trailer. The lead car slams the brakes. Physics takes over. Moments later, the truck has "rear-ended" a vehicle whose drivers set the whole scheme in motion. They call a lawyer. Lawsuits are filed. The Coalition Against Insurance Fraud says such scams help drain $308 billion annually from the U.S. economy, including $45 billion in property-and-casualty lines. Commercial vehicles, including truck drivers and rideshares, are easy targets to these criminal networks because the liability limits are high, and juries often blame the big trucks and commercial companies. Premiums for independent truckers have jumped nearly 50% in three years. In my home state of Georgia, 23% of every Uber ride goes directly into insurance costs. Fewer trucks on America's roads mean higher freight rates and thinner inventories. Every shopper pays the price. This fraud also corrodes the rule of law. Free markets can function only when real risk, not manufactured danger, sets the price of insurance. Honest drivers subsidize this deceit. The reach and breadth of this fraud is staggering. In New York, ground zero of the so-called "fraudemic," a surge of staged-accident lawsuits and collusion between plaintiff lawyers and medical providers triggered investigations that forced one billboard attorney firm to drop hundreds of bogus claims. Since 2014, there have been 63 investigations involving U-Haul-related fraud, resulting in 47 arrests, including 20 criminal cases opened in 2019 alone. A focused federal task force could put a stop to this. Stronger laws must also back the effort. I have introduced the "Staged Accident Fraud Prevention Act." It would make causing a crash for a payday a specific federal crime with hard prison time. Fraud is already illegal, but current penalties were written for one-off crashes, not the exploding cottage industry of assembly-line scams, causing million-dollar payouts. The law should match the crime. This bill still ensures justice for those who have been harmed in an accident. Genuine victims would still get their day in court. What vanishes is the incentive to invent injuries or recruit passengers as props. This fraud also corrodes the rule of law. Free markets can function only when real risk, not manufactured danger, sets the price of insurance. Honest drivers subsidize this deceit. The reach and breadth of this fraud is staggering. Consumers would benefit first. Lower fraud losses mean lower premiums. Small trucking operators would stay in business. Rideshare passengers would see relief in the form of their total ride cost. Roads would grow safer. Support for broad reform is growing. The American Trucking Association, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, and rideshare companies like Uber have all called for quick action in launching a task force. These organizations are on the road every day and see it firsthand. The path forward is clear. The Department of Justice should launch the task force. Congress should pass the prevention act. Staged-accident fraud may not lead cable news segments nightly, but it drains wallets and endangers lives. Congress can — and should — end it.
New York Post
2 hours ago
- New York Post
San Diego authorities arrest 3 illegal migrants allegedly involved in transporting more than $5M worth of meth
Federal and local authorities in San Diego arrested three men in the US illegally – two from Mexico and one from El Salvador – after they allegedly transported nearly 8,000 pounds of methamphetamine worth more than $5 million earlier this week. The incident took place on Monday around 7 p.m. during a joint narcotics investigation in the South Bay region, the San Diego County Sheriff's Office announced Thursday evening. SDCSO detectives and US Border Patrol agents observed three vehicles they believed were being loaded with bundles of drugs. A federal complaint filed by the US Attorney's Office of the Southern District of California said the vehicles were being loaded in a parking lot on Otay Mesa Road. Two of those vehicles were driven toward a motel in San Ysidro, while the third vehicle went to a motel in Chula Vista, the sheriff's office said. All three drivers were ultimately arrested. They were identified by the Justice Department as 27-year-old Erick Omar Arriola, of El Salvador, and Mexican nationals Eugenio Lizama, 35, and Baltazar Rodriguez Reyes, 49. Arriola is a felon convicted of driving under the influence, battery of a spouse and false imprisonment, the DOJ said. 3 Three men in the US illegally were arrested and accused of transporting over $5 million worth of meth. San Diego County Sheriff's Office 3 Authorities claimed they found a total of 61 bundles of methamphetamine. San Diego County Sheriff's Office 3 The meth weighed over 7,700 pounds. San Diego County Sheriff's Office When authorities searched their vehicles, they found a total of 61 bundles of methamphetamine, weighing more than 7,700 pounds and valued at around $5.5 million. 'It was one of the biggest seizures of methamphetamine in 2025 in the Southern District of California, and the most significant so far by the new Homeland Security Task Force San Diego, which was recently established by the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security at the request of President Trump,' the DOJ three men were booked into the San Diego Central Jail and face charges related to conspiracy, transportation and possession of controlled substances for sales.
